August 9, 2018

ALL COMEDY IS CONSERVATIVE:

It's not just the New York Times. Since 2016, a flood of editorial cartoons, magazine covers, late-night skits, and memes have depicted Trump as being romantically involved or sexually attracted to strongmen and right-wing political leaders. Although intended to mock Trump's strange--and noteworthy--political attraction to authoritarian leaders, these illustrations invoke old sexist and homophobic tropes. As they've become increasingly visible, some LGBTQ advocates and journalists have asked what message they really send.

Ange-Marie Hancock Alfaro, chair of gender studies at the University of Southern California's Dornsife College, says it all comes down to old-school gender dynamics. "We live in a culture where there is this casual homophobia that still persists," she says. "It becomes our default way of thinking about the world. Thinking about who has greater power and who has lesser power, we think about dominance and submissiveness."